Feb. 28, 2006
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame women’s tennis team – which moved up to #5 in the ITA national rankings earlier the same day, matching the program’s all-time high listing – posted a 7-0 shutout against #27 Indiana (9-3) Tuesday afternoon in the Eck Tennis Pavilion. The Irish improved to 10-0 for the first time since 1984-85 and are 7-0 against top-30 squads this season. Notre Dame will return to action on Sunday against #49 Illinois at 11 a.m. (EST) in the Eck Tennis Pavilion.
The Irish dropped just eight total games in sweeping the doubles matches for the eighth time in 10 contests this spring and then dropped only one set in singles, winning a match tiebreaker at No. 5 and in straight sets in each of the other contests.
Notre Dame won the doubles point for the 10th time in as many dual matches and now stands 28-2 combined in partnered play this spring. A total of 21 of those matches (70%) have seen the opposition win just three games or fewer. The Hoosiers also had been extremely successful in doubles this spring, having won the doubles point in 10 of 11 matches prior to Tuesday. In all, IU squads had combined for a 29-4 doubles mark this spring.
Done first in singles was the 29th-ranked team of sophomore Brook Buck (Yukon, Okla./Oklahoma Christian School) and freshman Kelcy Tefft (Enid, Okla./Chisholm H.S.), who won 8-2 against Brianna Williams and Sigrid Fischer at No. 2. The Irish squad – which saw its 11-match winning streak snapped on Sunday – rebounded impressively and moved to 19-3 on the season, including 9-1 in dual play. Williams and Fischer had been 9-1 this spring and 12-3 overall this season, and it was just the second time IU lost at No. 2 doubles.
Seniors Lauren Connelly (Oklahoma City, Okla./Bishop McGuinness H.S.) and Kristina Stastny (St. Louis, Mo./St. Joseph’s Academy) clinched the doubles point for the fourth consecutive match and fifth time overall this season by beating Alba Berdala and Cecile Perton 8-2 at No. 3. The Irish veterans improved to 10-0 this spring and lead the team with a 21-5 overall record in 2005-06. They have now allowed three games or fewer in each of their last six matches. The IU team had been 14-5 on the season, including 9-1 in dual play.
Junior All-America twins Catrina Thompson (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman H.S.) and Christian Thompson (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman H.S.), ranked second nationally, completed the sweep with an 8-4 win over Sarah Batty and Laura McGaffigan at No. 1. The Thompsons are 13-2 overall this season, including 7-1 in dual play, and have won five in a row. The IU team – which was ranked 19th in the preseason – is now 17-6 on the season, with half of those defeats coming against Notre Dame (one against each of the top three Irish teams). The Hoosiers had been 10-1 in dual action prior to Tuesday.
First off the court in singles was Buck, who was dominant in a 6-1, 6-0 victory against Williams at No. 3. Since a tight loss on Saturday, the ND sophomore has dropped just three total games in four sets and now stands 12-6 on the season, including 6-3 in dual play.
Christian Thompson, ranked 32nd, beat McGaffigan 6-3, 6-1 at No. 2 to make the score 3-0. She is 14-6 on the season and 7-3 in dual play.
The clinching win came from 27th-ranked Catrina Thompson – who missed Sunday’s match due to injury. She beat Batty 6-3, 6-4 at No. 1 for the seventh clinching win of her career. Thompson is 17-7 in 2005-06, including 7-2 in dual play at the top spot.
Freshman Katie Potts (Brookfield, Wis./Divine Savior Holy Angels H.S.) continued her hot play, beating Frenchwoman Cecile Perton 6-3, 6-3 at No. 6 for her 14th consecutive victory. She is 16-3 on the season (10-0 dual) and has not lost since Oct. 22.
Tefft then finished off a 6-2, 6-4 victory against Berdala, a freshman from Spain, at No. 4. The Irish rookie has won five straight and is now 15-2 on the season, including 7-1 in dual action.
Stastny rallied to beat the rookie from Germany, Fischer, 4-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-7) at No. 5 in the final match to preserve the shutout. The Irish senior is 9-1 in dual action and 18-5 overall on the season. She has now rallied to win after dropping the opening set on 10 occasions in her career.
Prior to this spring, Notre Dame – which has won 11 straight at home – had just one all-time 7-0 victory against a top-30 squad, but the Irish have accomplished that feat twice this month, having downed #22 Tennessee by the same score on Feb. 18.
Notre Dame has won 10 in a row for the first time since the 2000-01 campaign, when it won 10 straight from March 30-May 13.
The all-time series between Notre Dame and Indiana is now tied, with both sides boasting 10 victories. The Irish have won 10 of the last 11 contests after the Hoosiers had won the first nine meetings.
#5 Notre Dame 7, #27 Indiana 0SinglesNo. 1: * #27 Catrina Thompson (ND) def. Sarah Batty (I) 6-3, 6-4No. 2: #32 Christian Thompson (ND) def. Laura McGaffigan (I) 6-3, 6-1No. 3: Brook Buck (ND) def. Brianna Williams (I) 6-1, 6-0No. 4: Kelcy Tefft (ND) def. Alba Berdala (I) 6-2, 6-4No. 5: Kristina Stastny (ND) def. Sigrid Fischer (I) 4-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-7)No. 6: Katie Potts (ND) def. Cecile Perton (I) 6-3, 6-3Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1*, 6, 4, 5DoublesNo. 1: #2 Thompson/Thompson (ND) def. Batty/McGaffigan (I) 8-4No. 2: #29 Buck/Tefft (ND) def. Fischer/Williams (I) 8-2No. 3: * #49 Lauren Connelly/Stastny (ND) def. Berdala/Perton (I) 8-2Order of Finish: 2, 3*, 1
* - indicates clinching victory